Tinky
The girl called Tinky was the daughter of Groovy Grove and his first wife. She had long blonde hair. Tinky was 11 years old when she first met Dick Tracy. She was blind and had a service dog named Stony. She lived with her guardian Mrs. Moneynot and had a part-time job as an envelope stuffer at an advertising company. Early Tragedy While Tinky's mother was pregnant with her, Tinky's father was falsely convisted of a crime and sent to prison. Tinky's mother divorced him and married a man named Burns. When Tinky was three years old, her family's home caught fire. Tinky was rescued, but was blinded. Her mother and step-father were killed in the blaze. She apparently had no other family. Tinky claimed to have very little memory of her mother and step-father. She later began attending a school for the blind. She went to live with Mrs. Moneynot, who became her guardian. The school gave Tinky a gift of a small dog named Stony, who acted as Tinky's service animal. Meeting Dick Tracy Dick Tracy had been blinded when his home was firebombed during an attempt on his life by agents of the Apparatus. Adjusting to this new situation, Tracy happened to meet Tinky on the streets of the city. Though Tracy was determined to maintain his independence, he was grateful for the girl's compassion and friendship. Tinky's job was eliminated, and she had no other prospects. The opportunity arose for her to have her eyes treated by a renowned specialist, and Tracy and his friends did everything possible to arrange the consultation. However, the doctor claimed that he could not help Tinky. The optimistic girl kept her spirits high. Tracy's eyesight slowly began to return, but he kept this a secret from his co-workers and Tinky. He continued to pretend to be blind in the hopes that the Apparatus would attempt to strike again. Tracy spent his days sitting on a park bench, and he brusquely told Tinky to stay away from him. The girl could not keep herself away from her new friend, and was nearby when Tracy was shot at by an Apparatus hitman. Tracy killed the assailant, but Tinky was struck by a stray shotgun blast. Tinky was rushed to the hospital and received medical attention. Her recovery was slow, and Tracy visited her often. Stony refused to leave the girl's bedside, and special permission for the dog had to be arranged with the hospital. Eventually, Tinky regained consciousness and began to recover. Tinky's Reunion It was around this time that Groovy Grove was released from prison and joined the police force. He began to work in Tracy's department as a uniform officer, and met Tinky (who had been given a job in the computer records room). Various evidence was gathered that established that Groovy was Tinky's father. Groovy was informed of this, but asked that Tinky not be told. He stated that he wanted to be sure that she would approve of him, and wanted the opportunity to prove his worthiness. Tinky began being treated by a different eye specialist who believed that her vision could be restored over the course of several months. Tinky met with this doctor regularly, often accompanied by Sparkle Plenty, who had befriended the girl. Tinky became the target of Diamonds, a former cellmate of Groovy's who wanted leverage with which to influence the new police officer to be an accomplice in Diamonds' crimes. Diamonds poisoned Stony and left him for dead in an alley. He then abducted Tinky. Tinky was rescued by Groovy, and Diamonds was killed. On the day that Tinky's vision was restored, Groovy revealed that he was her father. This revelation was overshadowed by the return of Stony. The dog had lost his eyesight but found his way to Tinky's home guided by instinct. Tinky was overjoyed at Stony's return and vowed to take care of him. For a brief time afterwards, Tinky was somewhat distant to Groovy. She eventually revealed that she was hesitant to believe that he was really her father, and that so many good things could happen to her all at once. She and Groovy made a home together and lived as a family. Tinky was riding in Groovy's car with him and Lizz when the vehicle was struck by the falling body of undercover narcotics agent Tufor Dee. Tinky was not injured. Notes * Tinky's status following the death of Groovy is unknown. Lizz would technically be her step-mother, but this has not been addressed (see also Spec). *It is also unclear if Tinky is still a child. At Christmas of 1970, she was shown meeting a young Honeymoon Tracy, who has since been de-aged and re-aged within the context of the strip. *According to the timeline established in the strip, Tinky was born in August of 1958. Groovy went to jail in July of 1958, and Tinky's home burned down in 1961. *Curiously, the burned ruin of Tinky's home had not been cleared or rebuilt by 1970 when Lizz went to investigate the girl's history. *Tinky was a fan of Vera Alldid's comic strip "The Invisible Tribe". *Tinky's last name was not established. It was apparently not "Grove", as that would have reduced the mystery of her parentage, and it was not explicitly stated that she was given the name of her step-father, "Burns". It is reasonable to deduce that when Tinky's mother divorced Groovy Grove, she would have reverted back to her unrevealed maiden name, and subsequently applied that to Tinky (though that would also have served as a strong clue to Groovy as to Tinky's parentage). It was not said if Tinky began to use the surname "Grove" after she was reunited with her father. *Similarly, it was not established that "Tinky" was a nickname, so readers must assume that it is her given name. *Tinky was a significant supporting character in the strip throughout 1970, but has rarely appeared since. Category:Orphans Category:Characters That First Appeared as Kids